"Your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions,
you old men will dream dreams..." Joel 2:28/Acts 2:17
There may be those among us who are cessationist (believing that such things
died out with the apostles) or who are simply skeptical and cautious (not
necessarily a bad thing!) about these things...but I'm not one of them. (Well,
OK, I AM cautious...). I think that prophecy, God communicating directly with
His people, still happens. I *know* that God speaks to me in my dreams, and
that there is a definite "quality" about a dream that is from Him as opposed to
being the processed refuse of the day. My rule of thumb is that if the dream
really "sticks with me" in the morning, if I'm pondering it the next day, then
God is trying to get my attention about something. I then usually just pray
"God what did you mean by that?" and lately, at least, the meaning springs to
mind. It's been very encouraging of late--though also humbling, as I realize
that God is putting His finger on some very painful issues. The only thing more
I have to say about this is that God is *GOOD*. Even when He approaches my fear
and sin, He is gentle. The combination of Truth and Grace can, IMHO, only be
from Him. Satan (and our own perfectionism) can try to hammer us with graceless
truth, or he (and our flesh) can deceive us with truthless grace--but Grace and
Truth together is not so easily counterfeited.
>
> If you take it a step further, and you believe what has been said about
> Nostradamas, who was feeding him information? What about the apparitions
> throughout history? There are many reported sightings of Mother Mary to
> people with instructions and foretelling of events.
Pray for *discernment* at all times. In our church, those who have visions,
dreams, or words--particularly those that apply to others or to the church as a
whole--submit them first to pastoral authority. We weigh them with Scripture.
We pray for confirmation. And finally, we use common sense. It's a lot like
discerning God's will in general.
>
> Does God, as in the bible, still communicate with such clarity from the world
> of the Spirit to the world of the flesh?
Just keep in mind that just as in the days of the Bible, the world of the spirit
is encountered in, and filtered by, the world (external and internal!) of the
flesh. That can make it hard to hear, or vulnerable to twisting. But with the
counsel of the Body of Christ, with the Scriptures, and with continuing prayer,
I am convinced that His Words *do* break through.
> Without confusing the whole issue with too many caveats and ideas, can you
> address the literal translation of the bible.
I'm going to have to leave this for others...but I'm personally in sympathy with
your viewpoint, at least as I read it in this post.
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Scott Oakman Graduate Program in Neuroscience
University of Minnesota MD/PhD Program
oakma001@maroon.tc.umn.edu
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Man wonders over the restless sea, the flowing water, the sight of sky,
and forgets that of all wonders man himself is the most wonderful.
--Augustine of Hippo